Tangier: Boosting Morocco's Economic Growth

The Tanger Med II concession awards have enriched the port's exisiting portfolio of partnerships with leading global shipping lines and terminal operators.

Tanger Med

Another good sign  is that the Tangier Regional Investment Centre recently announced in August that they  had assisted  in the formation of 796 enterprises  during the first quarter of 2008. The largest sector was services with 46.23 % followed by public works and building industry at 27.64% emphasizing Tangier's property boom , trade at 19.9% and industry 1.5%. This shows a healthy local Moroccan business development in Tangier.

The Tangier Free Zone which now hosts 352 international companies including aviation , IT  and automobile construction amongst  many others  provides an ideal location for foreign investors to set up manufacturing plants which can export tax free to Europe and world wide locations via Tangiers Airport and the Tangier Med Hub Port . Trade agreements concluded with the US, EU , Turkey, Egypt and Jordan give added impetus to the export effort. 
 
Tangier's geographical location makes it ideal for exporting to Europe ,Africa, the USA and the Middle East and Far East. An example of this is Morocco's export of the Logan  car to Egypt in line with the Agadir agreement as announced by the Minster of Trade Mr Abdellatif Maazouz.  Tunisia and Jordan will also be important markets for the Logan.

The message that cost effective manufacturing solutions    can be found in Tangier has clearly got through as the US  automobile manufacturer, the  Delphi Group is creating 3,441 jobs in 2008 through an agreement signed with the National Agency  for the Promotion of Employment and Skills (ANAPEC).

The jobs will be recruited in the Delphi Automotive Systems Morocco Unit in Tangier  which already employs 2,289 workers and the new Delphi Packard  Systems Morocco Unit in  the Tangier Free Zone which will employ 1,1 52 workers. Delphi has become the largest car component manufacturer in Tangier. The Michigan based group present in Morocco since 1999, employs 170,000 workers in 36 countries and chose Morocco  because of its attractive incentives for investment and its key geographical location.

The spectacular Renault Nissan manufacturing agreement in the Tangier Free Zone  to build a euro 600 million plant to make 200,000 cars by 2010 proved that the Plan Emergence which sees Morocco as a platform for manufacturing and export to different regions is a wise and far sighted one., Further investment by the Group of another 200 to 400 million euros is envisaged depending on the vehicles produced. This automobile manufacturing plant will be the biggest in the Mediterranean and will provide 6,000 direct and up to 30,0000 indirect jobs. The Chief Executive of Renault Nissan , Carlos Ghosin  commented that the plant will supply low cost cars to the international market noting that it was now impossible to achieve this level of production in Western European plants because of cost factors. This is a  highly significant success for Morocco.

The   Tangier  Mediterranenan   Port phase 1 complex has been operational since  2007. Located 35 km East of Tangier and 12 km from Europe, the Port has the Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority (JAFZA)  as a partner, Terminal  1 operated by APM Terminals Tangier, an APMoller Maersk ( Denmark) subsidiary,  started  operations in July 2007. Terminal 2  has  launched its activities in August 2008. It is operated by Eurogate Tanger whose shareholders include MSC ( Switzerland  and CMA CGM (France) respectively ranked 2nd  and 3rd largest shipping lines in the world , as well as Eurogate(Germany) , Contship (Italy) and Commonav (Morocco ). The Chief Executive Officer  of Tanger Med is Said Mehdi and the Director is Mr Rachid Ouali.

Tanger Med

Built on the junction of major shipping routes this mega  project costing an estimated   US$ 1.3 billion   will allow Morocco to open up to the world with container traffic on  sea routes to the USA, Europe, Africa,  the Middle East and Far East. The container terminal is able to host the largest next generation container vessels in the world and has 1,600 metres straight berth front with up to- 18 mlw depth  and 500 m at-12mlw, 95 hectacres of open areas ,a nominal capacity of up  to 3.5 million TEUs and connection to the railway network. 

It establishes Morocco in a leading position with regard to the Mediterranean Euro zone. The Port will  also develop a 15km free Trade Zone for wholesale and retail corporations and a special RoRo  terminal with potentially 8 berths, harbor station and RORO/ITR parking area  a capacity of 5 million passengers. A million cars and 500,000 trucks  and passenger  ferry  with rail connection to the port,to be ready in the second quarter of 2009. There will also be a berth dedicated as a refined products storage area . This  concentrates  on the bunkering of vessels at the port and import of refined products for the strait's area, The concession was granted to  Horizon Terminals (ENOC-UAE) . There is als a bulk and general cargo terminal with a berth at -15mlw and an open area of 15 hectares.  A  54 km highway links the port to Free Zones  and the Tangier Casablanca Highway.    

The Tanger Med project seeks to ensure the development of the North of Morocco as a provider for European markets taking advantage of the Free Trade Agreement  with Europe. Free Trade agreements with the US, Egypt, Turkey and Jordan will also help to underpin the development of Morocco's global trade.
 
Tangier  Med port phase II  is now well underway following the launch of the project in July 2007 by the Tangier Mediterranenan Special Agency (TMSA) which announced in 2008 that it had awarded consessions for deep water container terminals  in  terminals 3 and 4 of the Tanger Med II Port.
 
Terminal 3 with a throughput capacity  of 3 million TEU(20 foot equivalent units) 1,600 metres of quays and 88 ha of container yard, was awarded to a consortium made up of Maersk A/S  of Denmark, APM Terminals of the Netherlands and Akwa Group of Morocco. The capacity of this terminal will be mainly dedicated to  Maersk line.
 
Terminal 4 with a throughput capacity of more than 2 million TEU , I,200 metres of quays and 54 ha of land was awarded to a consortium made up of PSA( Singapore) Marsa Maroc and SNI (Morocco). This Common user terminal will be accessible to a broad range of domestic and international shipping lines. The members of the consortiums selected by TMSA are all leading national and international operators.

AP Moller Maersk Group which will hold a 90% interest in terminal 3 is the foremost ship owner in the world with a fleet of more than 500 container  ships owned by various seafreight subsidiaries. This group is also the third largest port operator in the world through its subsidiary APM Terminals, which operates an international network of more than 50 terminals in 31 countries with another 14 under development.

Akwa Group is the top ranked Moroccan energy group and the leader in the fuel and gas distribution  market.It is also active I n other sectors , such as print press, telecommunications and logistics.
PSA, the world's leading  container terminal operator will hold a 50% interest in the terminal 4 concession. PSA is the second largest port operator in the world. With operations in 28 ports and 16 countries , the group handled 58.9 million TEUs in 2007 including 27 million in the port of Singapore, the largest container port in the world.
 
Marsa  Maroc is Morocco's   port operator. This state owned company offers a broad range of services in 9 Moroccan ports and currently handles almost all container traffic to and from Morocco.
 
SNI is an investment holding with a market value of 20.4 billion dirham ( €1.8 billion). It is listed on the Casablanca stock Exchange . Its portfoiio of business  interests focuses on five strategic participations . ONA Group, Lafarge Maroc, Sonasid, Wana and Somed.
 
Under the 30 year concession agreements to be signed between the consortiums and TMSA, the winning bidders commit to provide all superstructures and equipment needed to operate the two terminals, involving an initial investment of €600 million. The business plans of the future concessionaires anticipate a throughput of more than 5 million TEU for both terminals starting from the 5th year of operation.
 
The construction works  of Tanger Med II will be launched at the end of 2008 once the construction contract is awarded and the financial structure is finalised. Tanger Med II terminals 3 and 4 are scheduled to start up at the end of 2012.
 
With the completion of the Tanger Med II project the Tanger Port Complex will have a container capacity of more than 8 million TEU and hence stand as a leading port in the Mediterranean and as a reference port in the world. 

The Tanger Med II concession awards have enriched the port's exisiting portfolio of partnerships with leading global shipping lines and terminal operators. The intercontinental function of Tanger Med hub port is expected to benefit from the presence in the  Terminal 4 concession of PSA,  a reference Asian operator , the second largest in the world.

Tangier Free Zone

Colin Kilkelly- Yacout Info

Morocco property market growth ..

 Morocco has seen a market growth in property purchase enquiries from Brits, from an average of 36 per month in 2006 to 60 per month in 2007 and more than 100 per month in 2008

Morocco has seen a market growth in property purchase enquiries from Brits, from an average of 36 per month in 2006 to 60 per month in 2007 and more than 100 per month in 2008. Low cost airlines including Ryanair EasyJet and royal air Maroc have helped to open more business opportunity investments in Morocco, making the country increasingly accessible from the UK, the whole Europe and the north America, therefore, attracting British, Irish, French, Belgian, Dutch, American, Canadian and Middle East investors. In recognition of its increasing importance on the tourism and investment map, the Moroccan government is currently spending over $20 billion developing the country’s supporting infrastructure. New roads, rail links like TGV train and a massive airport upgrade are all underway.

When considering a purchase on a popular resort complex such as in Tanger Med, the development's situation within the resort is as important as the location of the resort itself: The Views is enviably positioned just across from the new free zone international port of Tanger Med which is going to be open in July 2008, Resorts with hotels, villas, apartments and shoping centres with Andalusian-style gardens and the 5 stars hotels, making it one of the most attractive and desirable low-density plots on the entire resorts. Mediterranean beaches and the proximity to Marina Tangier and Tetouan, along with a full range of on-site resort facilities all make The Views ideal for holiday properties and international business investments.
All discerning property investors realize the importance of taking advantage of the most lucrative real estate opportunities as soon as they arise, before they become common knowledge. The International Property Investment Network Myasilah operated by Luxury Living In Morocco - Property Investment ( http://www.myasilah.com ) helps all types of investors in their quest to access up-to-the minute information on the very latest investment opportunities in the worldwide property market today especially in Morocco.

New Tanger Med port launches its challenge

 - TANGIERS - Set to become the first container port of the Mediterranean and Africa, Tangier-Med was inaugurated by Moroccan king Mohammed VI, who launched the works five years ago.
To show its ambition, the port - situated on the south side of the Gibraltar strait - welcomed on the historic occasion the largest container ship in the world, the Evelyn Maersk, which transported 11,000 containers, equivalent to 100,000 tonnes, unloaded by five giant cranes.
The realization of the Terminal 1 needed 2 billion euro of investments and the concession of 30 years for its management was granted to APM Terminals, a group owned 90% by the Maersk company, which is the third world portual operator and the first shipping company with a fleet of 250 ships and a capacity of more than 12 million tonnes.
The arrival in the port of the big ship was celebrated by a tug-boat of the French company Bourbon SA which sounded its sirens. The port, victim of its success even before moving ahead full steam, will be filled by 2015 and forces the responsible of the port to think now of its enlargement in order to welcome 8 million and a half containers per year.
''The annual temporary capacity of the Tangier-Med Traffic is 3 million and a half 20-foot containers, to be reached by 2015. For this reason, from now to 2012, Tangier-Med II will be constructed, which will add a capacity of 5 million containers'', said Said el-Hadi, president of the executive council of the special agency Tanger -Mediterranee' created to construct the port.

Globalisation, Tanger Med, and the case for innovation

Just in case you have trouble quantifying globalisation, and why it matters, I thought Tanger Med, a new container terminal, and commercial development in Morocco, is the ideal example, and offers staggering consequences for us all.  Stay with me here
Investment in the Mediterranean | The Med’s moment comes | Economist.com

LOOK southward from the southern tip of Spain, across the strait of Gibraltar. There, only 14km (nine miles) away through the slight sea haze, arises the vast construction works of a new seaport to the east of Tangier in northern Morocco. Tanger Med (pictured) opened its first docks last July. Handling 3.5m containers a year, it is already as big as Felixstowe, Britain’s biggest port. A second terminal opens this summer, and within seven years its annual capacity will rise to 8.5m. It will be the largest container port in the Mediterranean, not far behind Europe’s biggest, Rotterdam (although merely one-third the size of the Asian giants of Singapore, Shanghai and Hong Kong). Similar ports are being finished in Algeria, Egypt, Malta and Tunisia.

What struck me here is, the location, the scale, and the fact it is unheard of in North America [or at least by me].
While we worry about Banks failing, inflation increasing, increased unemployment, and the price of gas [petrol] here is a development in Morocco with staggering statistics:

• larger than Britains largest Felixtowe [container terminal]
• closing in on Rotterdam [largest in Europe]
• Similar ports are being finished in Algeria, Egypt, Malta and Tunisia
• Auto manufacturers are building factories alongside to take advantage of the terminal, and the low wages

This from the article:

Renault and Nissan started preparing the ground for a huge car factory costing €600m. The Franco-Japanese alliance aims to build low-cost cars and vans not just for Europe but for markets around the world, mostly in emerging economies where the basic Renault Logan has already proved a winner. Annual output will start at 200,000 vehicles, but will double within a few years.

Renault (France) and Nissan (Japan) in Morocco!

So we have a new, extremely cheap, efficiently located distribution capability, with new centralised manufacturing capacity being built around it.  You can see where I am going with this.
Relevance to Bankwatch:
I posted earlier today that the next phase after the current banking crisis, will be a raft of takeovers. But thats not an endgame … what is really NEXT.  I suggest it is innovation  .. true innovation in the sense of new things we have not yet thought of will appear.
One thing we do know from history, is that disruptive innovation is not just created from new technology, but often after turbulent events that shake things up, such as economic crises.  Thats when people and companies dig deeper, do more with less and look for creative solutions, not just more of the same.  It is just easier do do new stuff when the chips are down, because risk already exists.
This is where the dreaded innovation comes in.  The only message Tanger Med has to offer Banks is that there is always someone somewhere willing to do the same thing better and for less.  If I am the CEO of GM, Toyota or any large auto manufacturer Tanger  Med worries me.  Yes there are the political problems in North Africa, and a host of reasons not to go there, but here we have a situation where the Southern Mediterannean (MEDA) is a close second to China in foreign investment, and closing fast.  This is driven largely by lower production costs, as well as sea route access.  Note that North America is a bit investment player here, but may well feel the consumer impact.

Where does that put Banks?

1. Where are the MEDA’s for Banks? 
2. Who will come along with a Tanger Med that so dramatically undercuts Banks in cost and easy distribution that it leaves Banks’ so far behind, they cannot catch up?
3. Which banker is certain there is no Tanger Med set of financial services just over the horizon? 
4. Tanger Med Bank … not just a cheaper version of the same thing, but located and built differently … something so different that Banks are wrong footed?

Perhaps I am dreaming in technicolour, but I am sure that GM in 1975 did not see cars being produced and shipped from North Africa at fractions of the costs in Detroit.
Thoughts and predictions welcome!

Reference : thebankwatch

In Focus: Tanger Med » Toll of Tanger Med

Spain's ports are having to seriously re-think long term strategic goals in the light of Morocco's Tanger Med success. Alex Hughes investigates

APM Terminals is committed to Algeciras despite fears that Valencia will outstrip the port to become Spain's leading container port by the end of the year

Spain's two south coast ports of Málaga and Algeciras Bay are in trouble.

The former reported a 28.3% drop in traffic in the first five months of this year, while the latter saw a decline of 2.04%. Both are transhipment hubs, whose longer term viability has been put into doubt through the opening of Tanger-Med, where rock bottom labour rates are proving highly tempting to shipping lines. In contrast, the two main Spanish import-export hubs of Valencia and Barcelona continue to report growth. While the latter reported a modest 3.26% increase in the year to the end of May, the former boosted traffic by 8.23% to 1.34m teu. Astonishingly, this is just 50,000 teu fewer than Algeciras handled.
Could it be that Valencia will outstrip Algeciras to become Spain's leading container port by the end of the year?
APM Terminals shows absolutely no signs of pulling out of the concession it operates at Algeciras, despite its own major presence at Tanger-Med I and II. Nevertheless, managing director Anders Kjeldsen insists that APM Terminals and Maersk Line have to be viewed as two separate companies.
“Our customers, which include Maersk, have their own network strategy, which also includes using ports such as Málaga, Cádiz and Tanger-Med. If APM Terminals at Algeciras does a good job, it will retain its customers’ business,” he says.
Significantly, Mr Kjeldsen emphasises that the import-export market, which currently accounts for around 5% of total throughput, is one that Algeciras has to be able to compete in. The recent addition of a major rail complex to serve its Juan Carlos I terminal and the decision by the port authority to invest in two logistics activities zones outside the city limits are surely testament to this.
“We are not yet shifting a lot of containers by train, but we have done some important trials recently. It's not company policy as such to go down the import/export route; however it is something extra we want to provide,” he says.
Asked about the impact of Tanger-Med on business at Algeciras, port authority commercial director, Gerardo Landaluce, claims it is influencing developments across the whole West Mediterranean and even in the Canary Islands, where transhipment hub Las Palmas has seen growth of just 1.44% this year and import-export-based Tenerife a drop of 15.86%.
“Tanger-Med is concentrating attention on the importance of the Straits of Gibraltar as a whole,” he emphasises, noting that its impact will ultimately be similar to Port Saeed's on the Eastern Mediterranean. “While overall volumes in the Mediterranean are going to increase a lot, in the short term, there may be some overcapacity, particularly if all the proposed projects along the corridor connecting both ports come to fruition. Nevertheless, it is open to doubt as to how many of them will eventually see the light of day.”
Having noted in which direction the wind was blowing some years ago, Algeciras adopted a strategy of diversifying traffic. It is now looking at further diversification through the arrival of Hanjin as terminal operator in 2010, says Mr Landaluce. A better ratio of import/export to transhipment traffic is also being sought.
“The new Hanjin terminal will allow us to develop import-export opportunities. Inbound traffic from Asia passes by our port, although mostly enters Europe via ports in the north, which then have to send it south. This makes no sense. We therefore see an opportunity to develop Algeciras as a gateway port for the whole of southern Europe.”
One of the ways this could be achieved, he suggests, is by expanding the port's already well developed feeder network. An alternative is to use the rail link to the port, which is being extensively upgraded. The efficiency of freight-on-rails in Spain is being boosted as new, dedicated high speed rail lines open, freeing up capacity on existing lines for more cargo trains to operate.
As to how this enhanced import-export role will ultimately affect Algeciras' incumbent operators, Mr Landaluce says that Maersk Line and APM Terminals are clearly trying to diversify their interests. “Up to now, APM was solely dedicated to handling Maersk traffic, but now it appears to be looking at attracting other third-party business. In the past, the terminal couldn't spend much time on import-export traffic, because Maersk was interested mostly in transhipment traffic at Algeciras. Priorities now appear to be changing somewhat."

L'avenir du port de Tanger

tanger port en mediterané